Zodiac Wars
by Broaway4l
Summary: In a world ruined by human strife and greed, four children must venture to the alternate universe known as the Digital World and fulfill their destiny. The children must find the 12 Zodiac Digimon, defeat the Royal Knights, and find a home for humanity.
1. Prologue

The weather was brutal and wild; storms had spread over the entire Tokyo area. The rain came down relentlessly and thunder clapped amongst the clouds. In the Quantum Accelerator Facility, in Odaiba, Japan, five researchers were preparing to activate their newly installed Particle Accelerator. With all systems set up: back-up power source, fail safe shut down, etc. the men turned on their Linear Particle Accelerator. As the accelerator was running a large bang could be heard outside. A lightning bolt had hit the side of the facility, cutting off all power. The back-up generator quickly snapped on, too quickly. The surge of energy was too much for the particle accelerator and smoke sprouted out from the contraption. The physicists watched as the fail safe mechanisms did not activate; therefore they were forced to cut off the accelerator manually. The five men arrived at the accelerator, and it suddenly exploded, sending quanta everywhere. The men were barraged with the subatomic particles and vanished in thin air.

They appeared on a large, precarious cliff that overlooked miles of grassland. The men panicked and searched for any hint of their location. As they shouted and scurried like scared rodents, four gargantuan shadows appeared. The first, with a humanoid body and six thin, wing-like protrusions on each side of its back, appeared and brought an immense brightness and heat. This creature also had a long tail with a spiked, circular object on the end. The second creature was also large and humanoid like the first. This creature had a large cape bellowing behind it and a massive snout-like protrusion coming out of its torso. Most notably, this creature had two clawed, shield-like gloves on each hand. The next was a manly figure with three horns at the very top of its head. This figure had claws similar to the second creature but smaller. The last figure was more bestial, standing on all fours. It had a wolf's mouth with two large, blade-like wings protruding from its back.

"I am the Dragon Knight of Raging Flames, Shine Greymon," said the first creature.

"Mirage Gaogamon, Wolf Knight of Phantom Winds," said the second.

"I am Gaia's Harbinger of Earth, War Greymon," the third manly figure spoke with passion.

A cold voice rang out from the last creature, "Poseidon's Frozen Hunter, Metal Garurumon."

War Greymon looked at two of the physicist and the weight of his body's energy crashed down on them. An invisible force seemed to crush them as they were forced to the ground and seconds later, fell over in death. In a fit of rage one of the humans attacked the enormous Metal Garurumon; he punched one of the creature's toes, which was about the same size as the man. Metal Garurumon stomped on the man without even looking down. Mirage Gaogamon pointed his left index finger at the two remaining scientist. Suddenly, the two were engulfed in a flame-like red energy. The both fell to their knees in pain, but one of them seemed to be burned alive as dark burns formed up his arms and singed his cloths. He succumbed to his burns and died within seconds. The other stood up even through the burns and pain.

"Earth man, what is your name," asked Shine Greymon.

"Kaname…ah! H-Higuchi, Kaname Higuchi. AAAHHH!"

With a wave of his hand, Shine Greymon caused the energy to calm down. It still raged like flames around Kaname, but it no longer burned him nor caused him pain.

"Thank you, Shine Greymon…Please, may I go home?"

"No, not yet. You have now proved that you are worthy of the great mission ahead. You must find the four Zodiac Children and bring them to this world…the Digital World. Upon doing so you will save the Digital World from total destruction."

Mirage Gaogamon sighed at the lack of explanation by Shine Greymon.

"Let me explain the problem, the Royal Knights are a group of Digimon, us, who have taken over the Digital World. With their vast armies, the only ones who can stop them are the 'Zodiac Digimon' who are powerful enough when together."

Kaname looked confused as Mirage Gaogamon spoke. He did piece a few things together. This Digital World was some sort of alternate Earth or a different planet entirely. These Digimon that they spoke of were native to this world and were creatures that, as seen with these four, come in all shapes and sizes.

"Each one of us, the Great Four, oversees three of the Zodiac Digimon."

"Now go home," said War Greymon, "And begin your mission or we will bring you back here and destroy you."

"Um," Kaname said nervously, "How do I get home?"

"Focus that energy around you, called Digisoul, into your hand. And punch the air."

Kaname grabbed his right wrist with his left hand and focus. Suddenly, the energy swirled around him and then transferred to his hand. With one shot, Kaname's punch hit the air and it cracked like glass. The Digisoul then spiraled out from the crack and a portal was opened.

"We will be in contact with you," said Metal Garurumon, "Oh, and you'll need to get the best and brightest in the world to help you find these children."

"As you wish, sir," said Kaname with a nod, "Thank you for showing me mercy."

With that Kaname walked through the portal; it sealed up right after he walked through it. He appeared back in the ruined laboratory and fell to his knees thinking about his co-workers; they were his friends and close companions. Now they were gone and he had a mission to complete. Kaname walked to the telephone and called the police.

"There's been an emergency," he said with little passion, "Please come to the Quantum Accelerator Facility as soon as possible."

Within days, news of the Digital World spread like a wildfire. Kaname had been interviewed by newscasters and reporters, even demonstrating his Digisoul on camera. Many criticized him as "a crazy scientist who murdered his co-workers," until the Great Four allowed members of the United Nations to enter the Digital World and see for themselves. The Great Four also showed them the destruction caused by the Royal Knights. Kaname was brought into the United Nations as a representative of the Digital World and a liaison between the United Nations and the Great Four. With the increased awareness of the "other world," the Great Four decided that only Kaname or the four Zodiac Children would be allowed into the Digital World because humans were getting too destructive in their own world and might bring their destruction to the Digital World.

Over a fifteen year period since the discovery of the Digital World, the "Human World" had fallen into utter chaos. Wars had erupted and engulfed the modern world. These wars began because the Third World countries formed power blocs and started attacking the First World in a fight for power. The first war began when the Amazon Republic and the Fascist South American States, made of all of South America except South Georgia, Argentina, Columbia, French Guiana, and the Falkland Islands, attacked the United States of America. Unfortunately for them, the United States unleashed a fury of nuclear weapons and eradicated said countries. Next India and most of the Middle East, except Jordan, Morocco, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, waged war on the European Union and planned to attack the USA next. These plots were foiled when the EU won, though it had lost most of its western states. Since these wars ended the world is in the worst condition it's been in ever. Since most of the suppliers of fossil fuels waged war on the USA and EU, the supplies have been cut off. The transition to an economy completely powered by reusable energy has been very rough.

During these wars the research about Digimon had stopped due to funding the wars, but now that the world was in shambles the UN is looking into the Digital World as their solution. Kaname Higuchi had proposed moving the remaining states to the Digital World, after saving it from the Royal Knights. The United Nations organizes the Digital World Committee with Kaname, now known as Commander Higuchi, as the head. With this committee, plans for the Digital World Reconnaissance Squad were formulated. Testing on humans for Digisouls began and after about a year it was reasoned that only adolescents could manifest the raw energy. The search began for "digitally compatible" children; children whose atoms were stable enough that if broken apart and transferred to the Digital World, the atoms would realign themselves perfectly. This process was tested first with the teleportation of small simple objects like grains of salt; next complex objects like diamonds and cars, and finally apes were tested before humans. The perfect four humans had been found; they were four Japanese teenagers named Mamoru Sousei, Setsuna Hibiki, Isane Yamato, and Kairi Kimura


	2. Chapter 1: The Elements

Chapter 1: Ignition

A boy, looking to be in his late teens, walked down one of the many long hallways in the Digital World Committee's main building. His brown hair was cut short, a "buzz-cut" as some called it. The boy's blue eyes matched his uniform; he was wearing an orange jacket with a high collar that cut off about three-quarters down his torso and was left unzipped. Under said jacket was an un-tucked white shirt with orange around the neck. Lastly, the boy was wearing gloves and white pants with a belt. The uniforms were designed after Celestial Being, a group of characters from Kaname Higuchi's favorite anime: Gundam 00. The boy arrived at a large metal door with a number pad on the wall next to it. He punched in four numbers and the door slid open. He stepped in and saw Kaname Higuchi in the same uniform but with black accents. Higuchi's short black moved a little as he looked at the boy in his doorway.

"Mamoru Sousei, First Child, reporting for duty," said the boy with a salute.

"Relax, Mamoru," said Kaname, "I'd like you to meet the others, Isane Yamamoto, Setsuna Hibiki, and Kairi Kimura."

Mamoru turned to his left to see the three other children standing next to a wall. The first, Isane, was a very attractive girl. She had gorgeous blond hair, tied in a ponytail. Each strand that fell to her shoulders looked like golden silk. Her blue eyes were like deep pools of water that Mamoru found very enticing. She was around five feet and seven inches, four inches shorter than Mamoru himself. She was wearing a uniform with a white knee-length skirt and lime green accents. The other boy was Setsuna Hibiki; Setsuna was a little taller than Mamoru but looked a little thinner. Setsuna also had snow white hair but was definitely not albino, having fair skin. His hair fell to his ears and exaggerated his emerald eyes. Setsuna's uniform had tighter sleeves, making him look very thin and purple accents. The other girl Kairi was about the same height as Isane but had ear length brown hair. Her hair was the same shade of brown as her eyes, like mahogany. She wore an identical version of Mamoru's uniform but this one had dark blue accents on it.

"Comander Higuchi, is it time to start, sir?"

"Let me first explain what's going on," he paused and took a deep breath, "As you know, you all are going to the alternate world called the Digital World. It houses creatures of all sorts called Digimon. Among these Digimon there is a group of very powerful Digimon called the Royal Knights, who have conquer the Digital World under an iron fist. Your job is to find the twelve Zodiac Digimon and defeat the Royal Knights so that the Great Four can rule the Digital World peacefully."

"Who are the Great Four," asked Setsuna, in a cold and empty tone.

"They are four powerful Digimon who were the ones that sent me to find you all. They are not powerful enough to defeat the twelve Royal Knights, though."

A man stepped out from the shadows behind Higuchi's desk. He was Admiral Katagiri, Higuchi's second-in-command.

"Your other task, and possibly more important," he said softly, "Is to find a place or multiple places, that would be safe for the Earth's population to colonize under the flag of the United Nations."

Higuchi nodded and the pressed a button on his desk. The floor opened up between the kids and him and four pods rose up.

"These are your transfer ports for the Digital World. I cannot create a portal large enough for more than two people without the help of the Great Four. Now step into your pods and the transfer will begin."

The children opened the four pods and stepped into them. Suddenly, the doors to the pods locked and screwed shut. The machines started to audibly turn on and power up. Higuchi input some data via a keyboard at his desk and the pods started to glow. He hit enter on his keyboard and the pods scanned each kid. Their bodies slowly started to disintegrate and vanished into thin air. Katagiri looked on in horror as the pods flashed and were suddenly empty.

"I hope they get there safely, they've got a great mission ahead of them."

A flash of light appeared in the Digital World and a series of fractal codes spiraled chaotically in the air. Four sets of legs started to form, then torsos, arms and heads. The four Zodiac Children had finally arrived in the Digital World. The children had arrived on top of a grassy hill. There was a nearby road which led to what looked to be a village. Kairi and Isane were the only ones who had taken in the scenery. Setsuna staggered a little bit after his arrival; Mamoru just bent over and threw up.

"I don't want to do that anymore," said the boy.

"Well don't worry, it'll be a while before you return to Earth, Mamoru of Fire," Shine Greymon's voice was heard before the Digimon was seen.

The Great Four appeared before the Zodiac Children, casting massive shadows over the tiny humans. Shine Greymon pointed his right index finger at Mamoru and the boy was suddenly engulfed in brilliant white flames. They did not burn him, if anything he felt relaxed inside the inferno. Mirage Gaogamon summoned gales around Kairi. The winds quickly turned into a tornado, and Kairi's cloths fluttered violently; Kairi shrieked in fear until she realized there was no danger. War Greymon scowled at Setsuna as he slammed his foot onto the ground. Magma and molten rock erupted around him and rain back down upon the boy. He panicked and looked for an escape but soon realized the magma was not hot when she touched it. Lastly, Metal Garurumon blow a cold wind at Isane and ice shard formed. The shards danced violently around her but never once did they cut or scrape her.

"We are the Great Four," said Mirage Gaogamon, "We govern the elements of triplicity: Fire, Wind, Earth, and Water."

"Each of these corresponds to the Zodiac Digimon we govern was well. I, War Greymon, govern the Earth signs: Taurus, Virgo, and Capricorn. You shall represent me, Setsuna of Earth."

"Mamoru," said Shine Greymon, "You are the ruler of the Fire signs: Leo, Sagittarius, and Aries."

"Isane, I am Metal Garurumon and you wield the Water signs: Pisces, Cancer, and Scorpio."

"Lastly," said Mirage Gaogamon, "Kairi of Air, Gemini, Aquarius, and Libra are your signs, the Air signs."

Suddenly, the elements formed spheres in their respective child's right hand. The elements turned bright white and when the light subsided a strange looking object was in the hands of the children. It was rectangular with a ring half way on the bottom. The object had a rectangular port on the top and a red scanner on the side. There was a green square screen in the middle and three slanted buttons. The each child's had a different trim and button color; Mamoru's was orange, Isane's lime green, Setsuna's was purple, and Kairi's was grey.

"These are your Digivices, the Digivice Burst," said War Greymon

The kids stared in amazement as the Digivces glowed in their hands. The lights vanished; suddenly, a lime green light appeared in front of Isane, an orange light in front of Mamoru, a grey light in front of Kairi, and a purple light in front of Setsuna. From this light formed four creatures appeared. The first was a child sized, dark grey gear; it had two red eyes, a golden outline, and two smaller cogs where hands might have been.

"Kairi," said Mirage Gaogamon, "This is Hagurumon of Libra."

Kairi's eye twitched a little and her face turned into a frown.

"This is it," she asked, "I don't get some ass-kicking war machine?"

Hagurumon didn't show any sadness or frustration. It didn't even seem to have emotions. Next, a cat-like creature stepped from the orange light. This cat had golden fur, much more like a lion than a domestic cat. The cat also had green eyes, a rather muscular body, a red tuft of hair, and a necklace with an emerald-colored, oval-shaped jewel in it.

"Hey Mamoru, I'm Liollmon of Leo."

Mamoru shrieked and jumped with childish excitement. Unlike Kairi, Mamoru was amazed with had strong and fearsome Liollmon looked. Mamoru looked to his left and saw a strange, big creature appear in front of Setsuna. This creature had bat wings and a chunky body; the upper half of its body was a deep purple and the creature had yellow eyes.

"I'm Tsukaimon of Taurus, what the hell are you looking at," it said to Mamoru and Setsuna.

Mamoru said nothing in response and turned his attention back to Liollmon. Setsuna observed and analyzed the creature; he preferred to view things from afar before interacting with them.

"Got this kid's lame," said Tsukaimon rudely.

Everyone looked over to Isane's Digimon, the final of the four. This Digimon was like a freakish tadpole that hadn't finished turning into a frog. This creature had a single large, red fin on its back. The creature was mainly green with a white under belly and blue stripes on its back.

"I'm Betamon," it said brightly, "I'm the avatar of Cancer."

Isane looked at the creature with her usual blank expression.

"That's nice, I guess."

"Now that you've all received your first Digimon," Shine Greymon paused and basked in the moment, "You need to venture out and find the other eight and master your Digisouls."

Each of the Great Four pointed at the children and their hands were covered in the same lights that their Digimon came from. The children looked unto their Digisouls with amazement like the elements that once surrounded them. Shine Greymon continued,

"Each of your Digisouls has its own properties: Mamoru your Digisoul empowers others with your courage, Setsuna you shall be able to fight on an even plane with Digimon, Kairi your shield shall protect those around you, and Isane you will be able to feel the sentiments of those around you, empathize in a sense."

"We will take our leave now," said Metal Garurumon.

All of them left except for Shine Greymon. He looked unto the Zodiac Digimon and Children as the Digisouls subsided. This was a landmark event; these four children could truly liberate the Digital World. The a smile on his face, Shine Greymon made eye contact with Mamoru for only a moment before vanishing like the others.

The kids weren't exactly sure what to do. The looked at each other awkwardly for a moment before a noise came from behind them. A small knight Digimon appeared behind the group. He wielded two swords, wore armor, and had a red tuft of hair on top.

"Humans? When I'm finished killing you all, I will tell my master, Lord Knightmon, that we must destroy the Human World next."

"Who-what are you?"

Just after Mamoru spoke the creature attacked. Mamoru stood back with fear as the Digimon charged at him.

"I'm Gladimon, and you're dead!"

Suddenly, Liollmon, Betamon, Tsukaimon, and Hagurumon were engulfed in their partners distinctive Digisouls. The need for survival had activated their Digisouls; this was evolution. Liollmon drowned in the orange energy; when the Digisoul subsided, a large humanoid lion stood in Liollmon's place. This lion had a bright yellow mane and pointy ears. He had a red necklace on that sat on his bare chest. The Digimon was wearing black pants and had a black belt wrapped around his left hand. On this Digimon's back was the sheath of his sword and below that was his tail. The beast roared loudly at Gladimon, who stopped in his tracks.

"I am Leo's beast king, Leomon!"

After Leomon, Hagurumon finished transforming. This Digimon was vastly different from Hagurumon. It stood at the height of a grown man and had a full body. Most noticeably, this Digimon had a large circular mirror on each arm. He was entirely green with a mirror where his head should be. The Digimon also had a mirror where its stomach should be. This Digimon's head was pointed at the top and it also had shoulder pads that extended about a foot and a half off of its shoulders.

"I am Mercuremon of Libra."

Kairi was impressed by Hagurumon's "replacement." Kairi looked over to Isane and saw a new Digimon there too. This Digimon was like a bizarre turtle; it had a yellow head, tail, and rear fins. It had a pink Mohawk on its head and a pink beak to match. Instead of a front set of fins, this Digimon had two sharp blades shaped like fins. On the top of its green shell, this Digimon had three spikes and from its head there were two green antennae.

"I am Archelomon of Cancer, nice to meet ya'."

Lastly was Tsukaimon's new evolution. This evolution was a bull; it had blue armor with a hint of gold around its hooves and its horns were gold too. The Digimon had a blue helmet on and a red cape came from the back of it. Its brown skin was visible on its thighs as there was a gap in its leg armor. Its tail swung back and forth as it snorted loudly.

"I am Bullmon of Taurus, and Gladimon, I'm gonna crush you."

"Guys help," shouted Gladimon.

Three more Gladimon appeared, evening out the numbers. One Gladimon charged at Leomon and duel began. Despite having two swords, Gladimon's attacks were being deflected and dodged with ease. Gladimon brought both swords high above his head and brought them down unto Leomon. The lion side-stepped Gladimon's attack and slashed at the knight.

"**Shishioumaru!"**

Leomon's attack was heard and seen by all; he brought his down onto Gladimon. The knight screamed in pain as he was cut in two. For the first time Mamoru had seen a Digimon get deleted; Gladimon dissolved and turned into an egg. Elsewhere, Mercuremon was blocking all of his Gladimon's attacks. Kairi was getting frustrated that Mercuremon was not attacking and decided to say something about it.

"Come on you sissy! Kill 'em already!"

"Yes, ma'am."

Upon Kairi's request, Mercuremon allowed Gladimon to attack him. The round little knight stabbed at Mercuremon but his attack was absorbed into Mercuremon arm-mirrors.

"**Generous Mirror."**

An exact copy of Gladimon's sword appeared from Mercuremon's mirror. The sword stabbed straight through Gladimon's armor and the knight was deleted like the first.

"Alright, that was kinda cool, but next time, do more punching and stuff."

The Gladimon fighting Archelomon saw its brothers being killed and turned more ferocious. He assumed a battle stance and then charged at the turtle Digimon.

"**Sword Dancer!**"

Gladimon unleashed a fury of slashes and stabs at Archelomon. The turtle retracted into its shell until Gladimon had tired itself out. With this opportunity, Archelomon rocketed itself at Gladimon and appeared out of its shell at the last minute.

"**Fin Cutter!"**

Archelomon's fin-blade slashed through the defenseless Gladimon, leaving it bifurcated and defeated. Isane stared at Archelomon blankly and turned to see what Setsuna was doing. Finally, one more Gladimon to go. This Gladimon tried to run away from Bullmon but only angered the violent creature.

"**Matador Dash!"**

Bullmon's shout echoed for miles as it prepared to attack. The beast charged the fleeing Gladimon and pierced through Gladimon's back with its horns.

"To hell with all of you! Humans are nothing but trouble, don't trust them!"

Mamoru was shocked by Gladimon's dying words as he saw the final knight get deleted. Kairi had given the dying Gladimon the middle finger for his comment.

"What do we do now," asked Setsuna.

"There's a village down the road, Maiden's Village. War Greymon told me that Virgo lives there."

"Well then let's go," said Mamoru cheerfully.

Leomon and Mamoru ran down the road excitedly. Kairi quickly followed, but Setsuna and Isane walked at an average speed behind them. They headed to the home of Virgo the virgin, Maiden's Village.


	3. Chapter 2: Maiden's Errand

As they walked down the dirt road, Mamoru finally got to bask in his own amazement. The boy looked around in awe and wonderment at the gargantuan trees, the bizarre bird-like Digimon in the sky, and the plant and animal Digimon hidden amongst the trees and by the water. Though Commander Higuchi had told the four children about the beauty and magnificence of the Digital World, Mamoru never thought it'd be like this.

"Guys, Setsuna, Kairi, Isane, look at this place, isn't it amazing?"

"I guess…I don't really care either way," said Isane.

Kairi and Mercuremon were ahead of the group, alone. The minute the battle finished the duo stormed off toward Maiden's Village without a word to the others. Kairi had looked back when Mamoru had spoken but then continued forward. Mamoru turned to Setsuna in hopes of a response but the latter was having some sort of argument with Bullmon.

"Aldebaran…it's your new name," said Setsuna.

"You damn prick! I," he grunted, "Am BULLMON!"

"But actually you're a special Bullmon, you are Taurus' avatar, and the brightest star in the Taurus constellation is Aldebaran. I give you that name because you are the mightiest Bullmon."

Taurus paused and looked at Setsuna; maybe it was only for a moment but Taurus actually appreciated what Setsuna said. After that moment they started arguing whether Bullmon should be called Taurus or Aldebaran. Mamoru looked unto those two sadly as no one had responded to him. Leomon placed a hand on his master's shoulder, though Mamoru was much less of a master and more like a friend.

"Mamoru," said Leomon, "I think this place is amazing everyday, and I live here. Even if the others don't show it, this place has them in awe."

Mamoru smiled at Leomon, who caringly smiled back. The two continued on the road until they reached a gate. A Koromon bounced up and down in front of them.

"I'm Koromon, the gate watcher. Who are you and why are you," said the cheery Digimon.

"We are the Zodiac Digimon with our Zodiac Children," said Leomon.

"We've come to see the Maiden of, well, Maiden's Village. We need her help to save the Digital World."

After hearing Mamoru ask for the Maiden, Koromon bounced away and after a minute or so the gates opened. The eight walked inside and were suddenly swarmed with Baby-level Digimon. While Leomon and Mamoru played with the Digimon, the others followed Koromon to the center of the village. In the middle of another mass of little Digimon was a red bird with a head covered in snow white feathers. This bird stood upright and had wings that looked more like arms and hands. The bird also had a belt tired around its forehead with a feather sticking out from the back of its head. This Digimon also had a strange symbol on its chest; it was like an M with a strange tail.

"That symbol," said Mercuremon, "It's the mark of Virgo, that's her."

"The mark of Virgo," asked Setsuna.

"Each of the Zodiac Digimon has the mark of their sign on them until the bond with their Zodiac Child; it fades away then."

"What about you guys," Setsuna replied, "Why didn't I see yours?"

"It was there but with the introductions, fighting, and evolving you probably never got the chance to see it."

Setsuna nodded his head and then proceeded towards Virgo.

"May I help you," asked a gentle feminine voice.

"We're the Zodiac Children and these are our Digimon, well we're missing two," said Setsuna, "You are one of us. You, Maiden, are Virgo the Virgin."

Hawkmon looked unto the six people with utter confusion. A part of her wanted to laugh at the sound of it but she waited respectfully.

"You," said Mercuremon, "Are a part of a group that is destined to defeat the Royal Knights and free the Digital World. If you want to protect this village, these Digimon, then you must join us."

Hawkmon actually laughed this time; not only had they told her she was a virgin star but now these strangers were saying they, a group of children and Adult-level Digimon, could defeat the Royal Knights.

"We will be stronger than the Knights when new have collective strength. That is why you must join us Virgo," Mercuremon pointed to the mark on her chest, "That strange symbol is the mark of Virgo, it is your mark."

Before she could reply, Hawkmon turned around to see a crying Otamamon running towards her.

"Miss Maiden! Miss Maiden! There's a Digimon, a Raptordramon attacking the other Digimon by the fountain! It bears the A of Alphamon, it works for the Royal Knights!"

An explosion was heard and after the resulting cloud of dust settled, Raptordramon was roaring in front of them. Raptordramon proceeded to break through the houses and other structures.

_I can't let this Raptordramon destroy this village_, thought Setsuna, _This would make a great place for a colony for humans. Maybe I can make deal with her: we'll defend the children if she joins us afterwa-_

While plotting, Setsuna heard crash; the boy saw Raptordramon moving at a speed unseen before, leaving the Zodiac Digimon in its wake. The Raptordramon was now standing over a crying Koromon, it was darker than the gate keeper. As Raptordramon went in to maul the Koromon, it suddenly slammed into a wall. Setsuna's purple Digimon now covered his left hand as he followed through on his punch. Setsuna looked at his hand with shock

_I did that with just a punch from my Digisoul, this place is crazier than I though._

Hawkmon looked unto Setsuna with pure admiration in her heart. She felt something strange and when she looked down the mark of Virgo had disappeared from her chest. Raptordramon stood up but as he did Hawkmon grabbed the feather off the back of her head.

"**Feather Slash!**"

She through the feather and it spun at Raptordramon, hitting him in the jaw. With a moment to spare, Setsuna looked at Hawkmon with admiration I his eyes; Setsuna's Digisoul burned furiously and his Digivice Burst began to glow. Unlike with Bullmon's evolution, Setsuna slammed his hand on the top of the Digivice and a wild energy shot out.

"DIGISOUL…CHARGE!"

In a bright flash, Hawkmon's body turned into pure energy. The energy began to look like an adolescent woman, with hair down to her feet. A purple swim-suit formed over her body with shoulder pads at the top. From her knees down were boots that were a colored purple and green. Over her eyes was a thick metallic visor and from her jaw down was an extension of the purple swim-suit material. A pair of clear and vivid butterfly wings sprouted from the Digimon's back and a metallic glove on each head, each with a pair of tiny wings on the wrists. Some small butterfly wings formed by the Digimon's ears and her skinned turned about the same color as Setsuna's.

"I am Fairymon of Virgo!"

Raptordramon had crawled out of the wall by now and was livid with Fairymon and Setsuna.

"I'm gonna kill both of you and give you as offerings to the Royal Knights."

"You attacked my village, an innocent foster home for these poor Digimon that were left alone in the wake of the destruction caused by you Royal Knights," as Fairymon shouted her voice lost its gentle tone from before, "I hate for my children to see my this angry but…I'm going to destroy you," she said viciously.

Raptordramon snarled and launched himself at Fairymon. His body began to glow brightly as he reached top speed.

"**Crash Charge!**"

"Not to fast, **Brezzo Petalo!"**

From Fairymon's finger tips spring tornados which he directed at Raptordramon. With the force of her tornados, Raptordramon was stopped dead in his tracks. Fairymon flew up next to Raptordramon and smile devilishly.

"You hurt my home, now I'll hurt you! **Roseo Temporale**!"

Fairymon unleashed a furry of kicks upon Raptordramon who soon keeled over in defeat. Setsuna ran up next to Fairymon, then the two slammed their feet into Raptordramon; Fairymon with the force of the wind behind her and Setsuna with hi Digisoul. Raptordramon dissolved into a Digi-Egg which landed in Setsuna's arms.

"If these people keep attacking my village then I'll go with you to stop them at the source," said Fairymon.

"Here's the thing, until we absolutely need to leave, I think we should stay here for a while. This Digimon deserve to have you around for as long as possible," said Setsuna.

_I can't believe I thought that this should be a colony for humans; these children deserve this place more than we humans do, hands down._

Fairymon smiled and cheered happily since she would be able to stay longer. The little Digimon gathered around Fairymon and looked at her with confusion.

"Hey guys," she said, "It's me, the Maiden. I evolved, I'm a Fairymon now."

Seeing the gathering around Setsuna and Fairymon, Leomon and Mamoru walked toward them with their own crowd of Digimon. Despite the fact that Leomon had all sorts of small Digimon crawling on him and hanging from his mane, he looked calm.

"We too the kids into hiding during the commotion," said Leomon, "What happened?"

"A Raptordramon attacked, he was working for the Royal Knights. The Maiden and I took him out, though. Now the Village is our home for the time being, all thanks to the one and only Virgo," said Setsuna, directing their attention to Fairymon.

Fairymon blushed and waved at the two.

"I'll need all three of you to help me take the others to the infirmary," said Fairymon.

The four began to carry the other Digimon and humans to the large infirmary where a Swanmon began carrying for them.

"I'm sorry I couldn't help you fight, you know I'm not to got at that," she said softly, "But I am good at this: **White Marie**."

Swanmon flapped her wings and then her feathers fluttered down onto the Digimon and children. The feathers each coincidentally landed on each of their wounds. The feathers started to glow and heal the wounds until they closed.

"Let them rest for the night and they should in tip-top shape in the morning."

"Thank you Swanmon," said Fairymon, "I'll take you to your cabins, sorry the housing is a bit messed up after today's 'incident,' this is all we have."

Fairymon pointed to a small cabin on the outskirts of the village. They three boys walked up to the cabin door and opened it. Leomon was barely able to fight inside the doorway, being twice as large as Setsuna. He saw that the two beds were both too small for him and he didn't have enough room to lie down; Leomon stepped back outside and looked down at Mamoru.

"I'm going to sleep out here; it's too small for me."

Mamoru laughed at how pitiful Leomon sounded, as though he was going to cry because he didn't have a bed. Mamoru walked into the cabin and Setsuna followed. Mamoru stood by a bed, claiming it, and undressed down to boxers and a T-shirt, they had the UN flag on them for merchandising. The boys climbed into their respective beds and went to sleep.

The next morning the boys got dressed and woke up Leomon. They all walked over to the infirmary to see that everyone was alright. Fairymon walked into the infirmary and smiled at everyone's health.

"Well since you're all better I have a request: will you all join me at the market? I'm going to get food so we can make a big breakfast for everyone."

Upon hearing of food Mamoru jumped around like a hungry dog. They all got up and hurried to the market to quell Mamoru's savage hunger. As they walked around the market, the children looked at the bizarre Digimon and the even stranger goods in the market. All the while, Setsuna was walking with Fairymon and Bullmon when he remembered something he wanted to tell Fairymon.

"Maiden, I wanted to ask you something; may I call you Azimech?"

"Azimech? That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard," said Bullmon.

"Ignore him," said Setsuna, "Azimech is the Arabic name for Spica, the brightest star in the Virgo constellation. I know it's not the prettiest name but I really think it's cool, it's cooler than Aldebaran."

"Who's Alde-," Fairymon noticed Setsuna pointing at Taurus, "Oh."

Elsewhere, Mamoru was walking through the market when he heard a commotion coming from behind one of the stands. Leomon grabbed Mamoru and leaped over the stand to see a large ape-like Digimon beating a smaller Digimon. This smaller Digimon looked like a tapir with a metal plane covering its head. It had two small tusks coming out beside its mouth. This Digimon was wearing a golden ring on its left foreleg. Its fur on the lower half of its body was a dark blue. The upper half of its body was nice mahogany. It also had large brown ears; the strangest thing about this Digimon was that it had smoke instead of hind legs and a tail of smoke too. The smoke was gray but didn't seem to move at all, it just floated and the Digimon.

"Mamoru," whispered Leomon, "That's a Hanumon and a Bakumon. I'm not sure what's going on but we should stop it."

Suddenly, Hanumon used the large white bone that its species always carried and smacked Bakumon across the face. With that Mamoru raced over to Bakumon who was getting back off the ground. Mamoru noticed the mark of Aries on Bakumon's back; the symbol looked like two upside down hooks joined at them "stem."

"Enough, Hanumon! Leave this Bakumon alone!"

"Who or what the hell are you!"

"I am Mamoru, ruler of the Fire signs! I will not let you beat up on this weaker Digimon, you're just cruel!"

Mamoru's Digisoul ignited and engulfed both himself and Bakumon. Bakumon began to feel stronger in the light of Mamoru's Digisoul, the orange energy was strengthening.

"Bakumon…Aries, I'll always protect you. It's my job as ruler of the Fire signs."

Mamoru's Digivice began to glow and the boy pulled it out. He pointed it at Bakumon was overcome by his own Digisoul; Mamoru slammed his hand onto the Digivice and a white light covered Bakumon.

"DIGISOUL CHARGE!"

Bakumon suddenly grew short stubby hind legs and become fluffier. Pink wool sprouted over and it even had a ring of wool around each ankle. Bakumon's face turned brown and more sheep-like. The Digimon sprouted red horns and puffy tail in the back. Light gathered on the Digimon's back and formed what almost looked like a jetpack. On each of the two thrusters was a smiley face.

"I am Sheepmon of Aries."

Mamoru's Digisoul burned brightly around the two of them. Hanumon backed up in fear but upon looking at the smaller Sheepmon he attacked. Hanumon held his bone-club high in the air as he charged at Sheepmon.

"Sheepmon," began Mamoru with an atypically soft voice, "Finish this…"

"Um, okay. **Wool Grenade!**"

The strange object on Sheepmon's back fired off its smiley faces, which turned out to be balls with faces on them. As they flew through the air, the balls sprouted a sphere of wool around them. The wool balls exploded in front of Hanumon, showering him in small puffs of wool. Suddenly, Hanumon became very drowsy and started to fall asleep. Mamoru looked at Hanumon as the ape Digimon fall down asleep.

"Good job, Sheepmon! Don't ever let other Digimon bully you, never."

Mamoru smiled brightly at Sheepmon as it defeated Hanumon. Sheepmon made its way to Mamoru and Leomon. It had a strange smile on its face as it looked into Mamoru's proud eyes.

"Aries, come stay with us. I promise to protect you, you're my little brother now and to protect you I-"

"Um, Mamoru," said Sheepmon nervously, "I'm female Digimon…."

Mamoru's eyes widened and he blushed with embarrassment. Sheepmon looked at him and laughed; Mamoru then laughed with her.

"I'm sorry Sheepmon," he said, "You're my little sister and I need you by my side so that I can protect you."

"And I'll be there to help you protect Mamoru," said Leomon.

The three gathered together and headed back to the market. The entire bazaar had closed down and no one was around. The trio looked up into the sky and saw that it was no longer early in the morning; the sun had reached its peak by now. They quickly headed back to Maiden's Village where the others were waiting for them. Fairymon let out a sigh of relief upon seeing that the two were safe. Upon further inspection, Fairymon noticed that there was something pink and fluffy hiding behind Mamoru's legs. Fairymon looked at Aries with a perplexed expression.

"Mamoru, you and Leomon brought another Digimon home," she asked.

"Yes," replied Leomon, "This is Aries, she will help me protect Mamoru."

Aries looked intimidated by the other Zodiac Digimon and Children, their Digimon seemed strong and scary.

"I am Fairymon of Virgo, welcome to your know home Aries, it's a pleasure to meet you."

"T-thank you…Fairymon."

"Don't worry," said Fairymon, "I'm new too, I joined yesterday."

Setsuna suddenly stood in front, next to Fairymon and cleared his throat.

"Aries, you must be strong if you want to beat the Royal Knights with us," said Setsuna, "Tomorrow I want to run some tests on your battle capabilities, I've already seen everyone here, already."

"Setsuna," said Mamoru as he noticed that Sheepmon seemed scared, "Leave her alone! Sheepmon took out an Apemon that was twice her size. Setsuna I swear to God, if I find out you're been 'testing' her and shit I'll punch you in your face."

For the first time in a, Mamoru was genuinely angry; he felt it was disrespectful for Setsuna to treat Sheepmon like a researcher project. Also, Mamoru had promised Sheepmon he'd protect her. Leomon noticed Mamoru's anger and ruffled the boy's hair.

"Relax Mamoru, Setsuna will do no such thing if he wants us to stay a part of this team," said Leomon.

Setsuna felt disrespected by Leomon but let it go for the sake of the team.

"I think everyone could use a night's rest," said Fairymon.

Everyone went to their own beds after Fairymon spoke. Mamoru slept outside of his cabin with Leomon and Sheepmon that night. He leaned on Leomon's shoulder as he slept and held Sheepmon in his lap.


	4. Chapter 3: Twins

Early the next morning Setsuna awoke to see that his cabin was empty. He got dressed and stepped outside to see that Leomon, Sheepmon, and Mamoru were asleep.

"Hey, wake up," said Setsuna.

"Did you come here to stuff Sheepmon into a test tube again," replied Mamoru as he slowly opened his eyes.

"No, I'm sorry about that. It's just that I'm worried; what if we're not strong enough to defeat the Royal Knights?"

"You just have to believe in our Digimon and their collective power," said Mamoru.

"And you should believe in the other Zodiac Children," said Leomon as he stood up.

"I hope you don't let me down, I hate variables their untrustworthy," replied Setsuna.

Above them was the sound of fluttering wings. Setsuna looked up to see the shadow that was Fairymon under the early morning sun. She was carrying a basket full of food. When she landed, Setsuna looked at the basket with confusion. At the same time Kairi, Mercuremon, Isane, and Archelomon all arrived to see Fairymon's return.

"I went to pick up some ingredients for a recipe Swanmon told me about," she said, "I came back early because there was an attack. An orange Digimon was seen ransacking the market and robbing people."

"Let's go teach this thief a lesson," said Kairi, punching her right fist into her left palm.

"That's exactly what I was thinking," said Mamoru.

"Guys, wait! We need to focus on the important stuff, like a better way of finding the Zodiac Digimon," said Setsuna.

Mamoru, Leomon, Mercuremon, Sheepmon, and Kairi ignored Setsuna, who, in turn, punched the side of his cabin. The group headed off to the market again to investigate the thefts. When they arrived in the market, they stuck together this time. The group walked up to a Tailmon; a small, white cat Digimon with a golden ring on its tail, large ears, and green gloves on its paws. Tailmon was also a bipedal Digimon, instead of walking on all-fours like cats do.

"Hey kitty," Kairi said threateningly, "What did you hear about the orange Digimon that came through here earlier?"

"U-um, I heard," Tailmon started nervously, "That it had attacked a few people and then left, that's all. No one knows where it went."

Kairi pushed Tailmon to the ground and kept moving. Mamoru quickly helped Tailmon up and apologized for Kairi's actions before leaving to talk to others. For a half an hour the group searched the market for answers. They had finished talking with a Sepikmon as they heard an explosion. An orange Digimon was attacking one of the vendors. Kairi rushed to the scene first and saw the Digimon. It was orange Digimon that looked like a small bipedal lion. It had a large tuft of golden fur on its chest and a tail with a flame at the tip. The Digimon had a circular object on each wrist, and it was glowing bright yellow in the center. This was also on the Digimon's forehead, directly in the center. The Digimon also had bright blue eyes which contrasted its fire-like orange hair.

"It must be that Coronamon," said Mercuremon, "They're a troublesome group of Digimon."

The group rushed over to where Coronamon was attacking to see that the Digimon was running away. It turned to the group for a second and a fire ball shot from its forehead.

"**Corona Flame!**"

The blast was reflected by Mercuremon back at Coronamon and exploded. When they looked to see where Coronamon was, there was no sign of him. Mamoru looked up at the hills in the background and saw an orange creature in the distance.

"Kairi, he's up in the hillside!"

"Alright let's go, I'm gonna beat the shit out of him!"

The group made their way through the market. As they were running they looked at all of the shops that were engulfed in flames. Why would Coronamon do such a thing? The vendors they had spoken to earlier said that some of the Digimon selling food and water were the ones who had been robbed, instead of just being assaulted.

_He has stolen things that we need for survival, hmm. There's a possibility that he's living in isolation so it's for him…or he's getting the stolen goods for someone else…_thought Mercuremon.

As they reached the hill, Mamoru was the first to notice that there was a hut or shack embedded into the hillside. The group charged up the hill, and Kairi kicked the shack's door open. Upon looking inside she saw a funny looking Digimon. It was white like snow with blood red eyes. There was a crescent moon on the Digimon's chest, wrists, and forehead. It looked like a strange cross between a gnome and a rabbit. Coronamon stood in front of the other Digimon defensively.

"Lunamon, stay back," he exclaimed.

The smaller Digimon scurried to a corner in the hut and cowered in fear.

"That makes sense," said Mercuremon, "Lunamon and Coronamon are twin Digimon of the moon and the sun."

"Twins," Mamoru paused and thought for a second, "Like Castor and Pollux…?"

"Who," asked Leomon from outside of the shack.

"Castor and Pollux, twins of Greek and Roman mythology," replied Mercuremon, "They are also known as Gemini."

Mecuremon pointed to Coronamon's chest and the back of Lunamon's hand, right on top of the yellow crescent moon. They each had a Roman numeral one, I, on them, and when put together they form a Roman numeral two, II, the symbol of Gemini. Before the group could speak further an explosion blew the shack wide open. Flaming chunks of wood and earth were scattered in the air. Mamoru looked to see a red dinosaur with smoke coming from its mouth. This Digimon had black bio-hazard signs all over its body and black rings on its wrists and upper thighs, with Digi-Code written on them. There was one unusual bio-hazard symbol on this Growmon; it was bright red, instead of black, and was in the center of Growmon's chest. Aside from the black markings on its body, this Digimon had two horns and gray hair sprouting from the back of its head. Lastly, this Digimon had a curved blade sprouting from each of its arms.

"That's a Growmon," said Mercuremon, "It works for Dukemon, only his Growmon have a Digital Hazard sign in the center of their chests."

"Listen, Zodiac Digimon," began Growmon, "I'm here to kill five birds with one stone. **Exhaust Flame!**"

Leomon went to grab his sword but Mamoru put a hand out and shook his head. The boy looked at Kairi as the fire ball headed straight for Lunamon and Coronamon. Kairi moved directly in front of the attack, closed her eyes, and prepared for the worst. The flames exploded in front of her but she felt no pain; Kairi opened her eyes to see a grey wall of energy in front of her, it was her Digisoul. Kairi looked back at the twins to see their marks glow and vanish.

"Let's do this," said Kairi.

"Ready when you are," said Coronamon as he held Lunamon's hand.

"DIGISOUL…CHARGE!"

Kairi's Digisoul wrapped itself around her hand as she slammed it onto the scanner of her Digivice. The grey energy engulfed the twin Digimon and their evolution began. When the light faded two new Digimon stood in the place of Lunamon and Coronamon: Lekismon and Firamon. Firamon was very much like a gryphon; he had the body of an orange lion with bright orange wings protruding from his back. Firamon's mane was golden and looked even more magnificent than Leomon's. Firamon had a black headpiece on that had three circles on it, much like the ones on Coronamon. These circles had flames coming out of them and there were two identical circles on the upper thighs of Firamon's hind legs. The gryphon Digimon also had a tail with a flaming tip.

Lekismon was like a strange, bipedal rabbit. She was wearing black gloves with crescents on each of them. She had crescents on her thighs and groin area. She had blue protrusions on her back, and two on each side curved around her body, appearing almost like ribs. Lekismon was wearing a metal mask over her face and had a pink scarf bellowing behind her. She had large, strange-looking ears, half of which were colored a deep blue. Firamon and Lekismon assumed battle stances and then looked at Kairi.

"What are you waiting for, kick his ass!"

With that Lekismon jumped forward, straight out of the shack, and landed next to Growmon. She jumped high into the air and her foot came crashing down on Growmon's skull.

"**Moon Night Kick!**"

Growmon was slammed head first into the ground and there was an audible crunch too. Kairi was cheering with joy at how ruthless Lekismon was. Firamon strutted out of the shack's ruins and slowly walked in circles around Growmon, who was starting to get up, slowly.

"So, Growmon, you thought that I would let you attack my sister like that?"

"Yes and what of it," responded Growmon.

"That was a foolish mistake on your part," said Firamon as he took to the sky, "There is an unbreakable bond between twins. When you infringe on this bond you unleash a force like none other, let me show you."

Firamon's body was suddenly engulfed with brilliant orange flames. As he flew high in the sky, Firamon looked like a miniature sun, blazing high above everyone else. Once he was ready, Firamon hurtled himself at Growmon.

"**Flame Dive!**"

Firamon crashed headfirst into Growmon and an explosion of flames erupted from the attack. Kairi watched in awe as Firamon walked out of the explosion unscathed. Firamon and Lekismon suddenly regressed back to Coronamon and Lekismon. Kairi looked a little tired, despite how excited she was by her new Digimon.

"That was actually the most bad ass thing I've ever seen," she said, "You guys are coming with us."

"Why would we do that," asked Coronamon.

"Well," began Mercuremon, "This Digital World is ruled by the corrupt Royal Knights. To protect your sister and the rest of the Digital World, we need you to join and the others as we search for the Zodiac Digimon. When we find the other Zodiac Digimon we will be strong enough to defeat the Royal Knights and save our world."

"Aside from that being a mouthful, I'd be glad to join you all as long as I'm never separated from Lunamon."

"I'll be looking out for both of you," side Kairi, "I won't let anything bad happen. Now let's go home."

The group turned and left the flaming remains of the shack and the scorched crater behind them. Mamoru turned and looked for a second and chuckled before continuing home. During the course of a fifteen minute walk back, Kairi managed to explain who, or what Digimon, everyone was and the concept of the Digisoul, to the best of her knowledge. They arrived back at Maiden's Village and called the others to the center of the village.

"Guys," started Setsuna, "I'm all glad you found Gemini but we can't keep getting side track. We need to find the others as soon as possible."

"How do you suppose we do that, genius," said Mamoru sarcastically.

"I think we should summon the Great Four."

"Setsuna, we can't just call their cell phones, we have know idea how to reach them," said Mamoru.

"That's where you're wrong," said Setsuna with a big smile on his face, "If we channel our Digisouls into our Digivices, I'm sure they'd respond."

"Alright, but if this doesn't work I get to say 'I told you so.'"

The four kids got their Digivices out and stood in a square. The each pointed their Digivices at the center of the square and summoned their Digisouls. The Digivices each shot a light the same color as the Digisouls into the center. A column of energy shot up into the sky and then faded away. Suddenly, Setsuna felt the earth shake, Kairi's hair and cloths started blowing frantically, Mamoru got very hot and started to sweat, and Isane got very cold. The Great Four appeared above each of their Zodiac Children and the residents of Maiden's Village stared in awe and surprise.

"Why have you summoned us," Mirage Gaogamon's booming voice made some of the Baby-level Digimon cry.

"We wanted to know if there was a better way to find the other Zodiac Digimon."

"You will meet Pisces sooner than you think," said War Greymon.

"You must go to the World Tree," said Metal Garurumon, "On your way you will meet the other Zodiac Digimon and reach your highest level of power."

"You will leave this village tomorrow," commanded Shine Greymon.

Before Setsuna could ask anymore questions, Shine Greymon, Metal Garurumon, and Mirage Gaogamon disappeared. War Greymon began to fly away but stopped and turned to look at Setsuna. The two made eye contact and War Greymon instantly understood. He nodded his head at Setsuna and vanished. Setsuna turned toward the others and sighed.

"Let's get a good night's sleep and we can pack stuff for the trip tomorrow," he said.

The Zodiac Digimon and Children dispersed and headed to where ever they were staying that night.

Later that night, Setsuna got out of bed because he couldn't sleep.

_Something's wrong with Azimech, I can feel it_.

Setsuna left his cabin and headed toward the center of the village. He found Fairymon sitting on a bench looking up at the stars in the sky. He walked over to the bench and sat next to her.

"Azimech, what's wrong? Are you scared?"

She silently nodded and then looked at her feet.

"It's nothing to be ashamed of, I've always been afraid of the unknown. I'm a methodical and calculated person, I hated variables. This entire adventure is terrifying for me."

"Really," said Fairymon as she broke her silence, "You always seem so brave and in control.

"I have to be, or at least I need to look the part. Part of me feeling in control is knowing that I have you by my side to help fight this war with me."

"But if I leave who will protect the village," she said, "Swanmon isn't a fighter she helps heal people."

"War Greymon will. Even though I hate variables, I can feel this inside me. I shared a connection with War Greymon earlier; he knew that I needed him to protect this village without me saying it."

"Is that why he nodded at you?"

"Yes, that's exactly why; that nod was his promise to protect this village for as long as I need him to."

"Thank you, Setsuna," said Fairymon, "I'm grateful that you would do such a thing for me."

Fairymon looked at Setsuna sitting next to her and leaned over toward him. She kissed Setsuna on the cheek, causing him to blush immensely.

"Thank you and good night," she said as she headed toward her own home.

Setsuna waved goodbye as he started toward his cabin. He quietly opened the door to the cabin, hoping that he wouldn't disturb anyone. Setsuna climbed back into bed, still blushing, and went to sleep.


End file.
